Elon Musk is taking a notable tumble from his lofty perch. Though the Tesla CEO has reigned supreme as the world's richest individual for much of the year, he has officially been dethroned by Oracle's Larry Ellison. According to Bloomberg, Ellison's net worth is now estimated at a staggering $393 billion. As reviewed by Bloomberg based on Oracle's quarterly results, the company's chief technology officer surpassed Musk's estimated net worth of $364 billion just after 10 a.m. on September 10, with his overall wealth soaring past the $400 billion mark, as reported by NBC News.
Ellison, aged 81, was previously ranked as the fourth wealthiest person globally, trailing Musk, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, and Amazon's Jeff Bezos, according to Forbes. Prior to his company's latest earnings report, his estimated net worth hovered around $192 billion. Oracle's stock experienced a meteoric rise, surging over 40 percent on September 10, marking its largest single-day gain since 1992, as per CNBC. This remarkable surge followed Oracle's announcement of massive projections during a September 9 earnings call, forecasting approximately $144 billion in cloud infrastructure revenue over the next four years, largely driven by the burgeoning demand for artificial intelligence.
Ellison's substantial windfall stems from his ownership of over 40 percent of Oracle, a company he co-founded and led as CEO for more than 37 years. He stepped down from the CEO role in 2014, as noted by Forbes, but continues to serve as CTO. In recent years, the tech billionaire has diversified his portfolio. He recently played a pivotal role in facilitating the $8 billion merger between Paramount and Skydance, alongside his son David Ellison, a film producer and founder of the latter entertainment company, as reported by Forbes. He also owns 98 percent of the Hawaiian island of Lana'i, which he purchased for $300 million in 2012 and made his permanent residence in 2020.
This isn't Ellison's first encounter with Musk, either. The tech titans, who share a friendly rapport, previously crossed paths at Tesla, where Ellison served on the company's board from 2018 to 2022 (Musk has been chairman of the board since 2004 and CEO since 2008).
Ellison's wealth has been steadily climbing over the past few months, and he recently issued a rare statement highlighting his intention to "concentrate" his efforts on his Ellison Institute of Technology, a for-profit enterprise he founded in 2016 with the ambition of tackling the world's most pressing issues. As he penned in a statement on X on July 15, "I believe this will enhance our prospects of delivering practical solutions to the challenges of hunger, healthcare, and climate change."
